“I could sing these songs
As I often do
But every song must end
And You never do”
Gratitude, Brandon Lake
“Let the redeemed of the Lord tell their story—
those he redeemed from the hand of the foe,
those he gathered from the lands,
from east and west, from north and south.”
Psalm 107:2-3, NIV
Worship is a response to what the Lord has done, and sometimes even a response to what He might do.
How then do we respond to the Creator, Saviour and Keeper of our souls?
The go to response for many of us is to break out in song and prayer. Today I want to suggest something else.
Our testimonies are a form of worship.
Psalm 107 starts with the words: Give thanks to the Lord!
Give thanks here, or ‘yadah’ in the Hebrew, is to heap thanksgiving and praise upon the Lord – to give Him praise, to worship Him, to lift up our hands and make confession of His goodness, His Glory and His great deeds in the Earth.
The Psalmist then instructs us how to render the fat of our praise unto the Lord.
To praise God is to make His name great amongst the peoples of the world. To make His name great is to go out and share what He has done. “Let the redeemed of the Lord tell their story…”
This immediately brings to mind what Jesus told His disciples – “you will be my witnesses!”
Paul regularly shared his testimony with whoever would listen. We see this again and again in the book of Acts and in the Epistles that follow. The other Apostles did the same.
Our testimony is often the greatest form of worship we can give to God because it is the kind of worship that invites others into the fold as well.
True worship is like a flame that beckons others to come (See Psalm 103).
And sometimes it is quite simple – a handful of sentences shared in passing. Sometimes it is longer and full of twists and turns.
Regardless – your testimony has the power to change someone’s life for the better. It is the kind of worship that reproduces and multiplies.
A good place to start is to write down your testimony. Write down the highlights, briefly explore what you were like before you came to Jesus. Secondly, explain what happened – or rather how you came to Jesus. Finally, it is helpful to jot down what your life is like now that you have come to Christ – what change has occurred in your life? How do you feel? How has your situation improved?
Once you have done this it is easy to share the highlights of what God has done in your life with someone else.
Whether you share it with a close friend or an auditorium full of people – the process remains the same.
In this day and age where social media is so accessible you could even consider sharing your written testimony through a post on which ever platforms you use.
Sharing your testimony doesn’t need to be hard. It is actually quite simple – and it is a way to render the fat of your gratitude productively unto the Lord.
Prayer: Lord, help me today to remember You in every conversation and interaction I might have with those around me. Help me tell others of Your goodness and grace. Help me tell others about what it is You have done in my life. Show me the best way to show the world Your love and mercy – and give me the boldness to do so. Give me the boldness to be Your witness in this cold and lonely world. In Jesus Name. Amen.